I joined a health club on New Year’s Eve. I’d like to say I was overcome with New Year’s resolve, but in fact had been pondering this commitment for several months. A too-good-to-pass-up promotional rate persuaded me to sign on the dotted line.
Aware that the healthcare pendulum has begun to swing from disease management to prevention, it occurred to me that my health insurer might reward me for this decision. Armed with the eight login and password combinations that unlock my benefits web sites (general site login, health savings account, vision, dental, general benefits, claims information, etc.), I set out to answer this question.
From the general coverage site, I first visited the Health Topics and Tools tab. Nothing there, although I did find an option to take a Health Risk Assessment. From there, I explored the My Coverage and Costs tab. The Special Services menu item there sounded promising, but while it provided partial coverage on everything from acupuncture to speech therapy, there were no rewards for healthy choices.
I then clicked on the Other Benefits link, which led to contacts for vision and dental vendors. There was also a link to a Discount Program Vendor here that I nearly ignored. However, with no other avenues to pursue, I followed this to a site that (after forcing me to register yet again) offered me a “health discount program†designed to save my family up to 50 percent on health-related products and services not covered by our benefit plans. After entering my zip code, I learned I was eligible for a slight discount at a health club in the vendor network. However, the closest club was 30 minutes from my home.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m happy with my decision and grateful to have adequate healthcare coverage. And offering me a health club discount is truly a step in the right direction. But if the industry mantra is really about living healthy, then get the word to members and employers. Communicate these added incentives front and center instead of burying them six or seven clicks deep on a web site. Send me an email, mail me a letter or add a bold link to my benefits login page to alert me to this healthy lifestyle incentive. Maybe a member like me who’s poised to adopt a healthy habit will be swayed by this carrot. In any event, the cost of this communication has got to be less than the financial consequences in healthcare claims.
And okay, maybe I do have one resolution for 2006: to thoroughly familiarize myself with all that my health plan has to offer, even if it takes a little digging.
